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Lot Essay
This important table by the Florentine brothers, Luigi and Angiolo Falcini (fl. 1836-69), is modelled on the celebrated Baroque table made for the Medici family in the third quarter of the 17th century, attributed to Lionardo van der Vinne (d. 1713), and by the 19th century in the collection of the Accademia delle Belle Arti, now in the Palazzo Pitti, Florence. It is one of four very similar tables attributed to the Falcini brothers, which are known to date; one in the National Gallery of Ottawa (no. 18187, purchased 1974), one in the Institute of Fine Arts in Detroit (no. 71.293, provenance, W. Apolloni, Rome), and one sold at auction (Sotheby’s London, 2 October 1998, lot 337, subsequently Sotheby’s New York, 16 November 2011, lot 77). Interestingly, the Medici family correspondingly commissioned four tables of this model in 1679 (F.J. Cummings, Bulletin of the Detroit Institute of Arts, Vol. 51, No. 1, 1972, pp. 12-13). In 1977, the similarity of the Detroit table to the Medici table in the Palazzo Pitti led to a suggestion that the former was by van der Vinne and 17th century (A. Gonzalez-Palacios, 'A Grand-Ducal Table’, Bulletin of the Detroit Institute of Arts, Vol. 55, No. 44, 1977, p. 169). This mistaken attribution demonstrates that the exceptional craftsmanship of the Falcini brothers can be taken for the work of a Renaissance master, and suggests their ability to recreate a series of tables of almost indistinguishable quality from the originals. When compared, the present table is not identical to the Medici table, but a magnificent interpretation by the Falcini brothers.
The Falcini brothers, restorers and creators of Renaissance and Baroque marquetry, were sons of a cabinet maker from Campi, near Florence. In the 1820s they established workshops in the via delle Fosse and via Rosa, Florence. Renowned for their superbly executed and elaborate use of inlaid woods in the Renaissance-style in a city famous for its intarsia workshops since the 16th century, their repertoire, which in the early days concentrated on neoclassical and monochromatic decoration, developed to incorporate richer polychromatic inlays and ornate, animated designs. A particular feature of their work was floral and foliate scrolls and wreaths inlaid in mother-of-pearl and ivory and also fruitwood on an ivory ground. The detailed naturalistic and individual treatment of flowers is also characteristic of their oeuvre. The materials they worked with included native woods, acer, box and olive, and for dark grounds like that of the present table the firm chose striking imported woods such as ebony, Indian walnut, and mahogany from Cuba and Jamaica. For red shades in the floral marquetry, red ebony (coralline delle Antille), Indian aloe and bois de violette from Gayas and Brazil was used. For yellow shades, legno di scotano, il sommaco di Sicilia, il priego di Spagna e di America and bois de citroen were chosen, and for three different shades of green, calambaco del Messico. Other hues like purple or light blue were achieved by colouring woods by chemical means, a technique that the Falcini brothers perfected. The practice of incorporating multiple coloured woods in addition to other exotic materials like mother-of-pearl, ivory, bone and on occasion metal reflects the Falcini brothers inherent interest in baroque art at the last court of the Medicis. Between 1834 and 1836 the Falcini brothers exhibited a medal-winning marquetry table at the Accademia delle Belle Arti, Florence, which was probably acquired from the exhibition by the Grand Duke Leopold II for his private collection. One of the four table tops, including the present table, was possibly the one mentioned in a report from the 1844 Esposizione di Firenze, '… una tavola a intarsio copiata da una simile esistente nell. I.R. Accademia di Belle Arti’, and again, and more compellingly, in 1847, in the catalogue of the Mostra Cittadina, '[the Falcinis presented] un piano di una tavola copiato da un capolavoro antico esistente nella Galleria dell’Accademia delle Belle Arti, appartenuto già alla famiglia medicea’. They subsequently presented their work at many of the exhibitions at the Accademia in addition to the 1854 and 1861 Florence exhibitions, the 1851 Great Exhibition, London, and the 1855 Paris Exposition. Their high quality work was in demand from many significant Italian and international collectors, and they were engaged in important commissions for a number of prominent patrons. The latter included Prince Demidoff for the Villa San Donato, Florence, the Duchess of Casigliano and Countess Borghesi. Luigi Falcini was also entrusted with the prestigious work of restoring the Renaissance doors of the Palazzo Vecchio.
The Falcini brothers, restorers and creators of Renaissance and Baroque marquetry, were sons of a cabinet maker from Campi, near Florence. In the 1820s they established workshops in the via delle Fosse and via Rosa, Florence. Renowned for their superbly executed and elaborate use of inlaid woods in the Renaissance-style in a city famous for its intarsia workshops since the 16th century, their repertoire, which in the early days concentrated on neoclassical and monochromatic decoration, developed to incorporate richer polychromatic inlays and ornate, animated designs. A particular feature of their work was floral and foliate scrolls and wreaths inlaid in mother-of-pearl and ivory and also fruitwood on an ivory ground. The detailed naturalistic and individual treatment of flowers is also characteristic of their oeuvre. The materials they worked with included native woods, acer, box and olive, and for dark grounds like that of the present table the firm chose striking imported woods such as ebony, Indian walnut, and mahogany from Cuba and Jamaica. For red shades in the floral marquetry, red ebony (coralline delle Antille), Indian aloe and bois de violette from Gayas and Brazil was used. For yellow shades, legno di scotano, il sommaco di Sicilia, il priego di Spagna e di America and bois de citroen were chosen, and for three different shades of green, calambaco del Messico. Other hues like purple or light blue were achieved by colouring woods by chemical means, a technique that the Falcini brothers perfected. The practice of incorporating multiple coloured woods in addition to other exotic materials like mother-of-pearl, ivory, bone and on occasion metal reflects the Falcini brothers inherent interest in baroque art at the last court of the Medicis. Between 1834 and 1836 the Falcini brothers exhibited a medal-winning marquetry table at the Accademia delle Belle Arti, Florence, which was probably acquired from the exhibition by the Grand Duke Leopold II for his private collection. One of the four table tops, including the present table, was possibly the one mentioned in a report from the 1844 Esposizione di Firenze, '… una tavola a intarsio copiata da una simile esistente nell. I.R. Accademia di Belle Arti’, and again, and more compellingly, in 1847, in the catalogue of the Mostra Cittadina, '[the Falcinis presented] un piano di una tavola copiato da un capolavoro antico esistente nella Galleria dell’Accademia delle Belle Arti, appartenuto già alla famiglia medicea’. They subsequently presented their work at many of the exhibitions at the Accademia in addition to the 1854 and 1861 Florence exhibitions, the 1851 Great Exhibition, London, and the 1855 Paris Exposition. Their high quality work was in demand from many significant Italian and international collectors, and they were engaged in important commissions for a number of prominent patrons. The latter included Prince Demidoff for the Villa San Donato, Florence, the Duchess of Casigliano and Countess Borghesi. Luigi Falcini was also entrusted with the prestigious work of restoring the Renaissance doors of the Palazzo Vecchio.